This matter was too bizarre to believe. Even with heaven’s mandate as proof, Fu Lingchuan’s eyes were still filled with doubt: “If you truly are Changle, you shouldn’t look so…”

She finished his sentence for him: “Ordinary?” In terms of appearance, the An Xia King and his wife were considered exceptional among people. Their offspring, even if not devastatingly beautiful, at least shouldn’t be plain and unremarkable.

Fu Lingchuan pressed his thin lips together, silently acknowledging her point.

So Feng Miaojun raised her sleeve to cover her face.

When she lowered her hand, what was revealed was her true countenance, capable of captivating all souls.

Even though he was accustomed to seeing beautiful women, Fu Lingchuan was caught off guard and couldn’t hide the amazement in his eyes.

The impostor lying on the ground was already an exceptional beauty who could make countless heroes willingly submit. However, compared to Princess Changle herself, there was still something lacking.

Perhaps it was that hint of spirited charm at the corner of her eyes, or that trace of dignified bearing in her demeanor, or perhaps that touch of cool self-respect in her very bones.

Just these slight differences immediately revealed the vast disparity between them.

Fu Lingchuan opened and closed his mouth, taking quite a while before finding his voice: “How did you… how did you escape from the royal capital back then?” By now he had quietly regulated his breathing and recovered. Feng Miaojun’s punch had been quite painful, but ultimately she hadn’t tried to kill him.

When An Xia Kingdom fell, the royal bloodline had all perished.

Feng Miaojun tilted her head slightly, revealing a trace of mockery: “It’s not much different from what cousin has been proclaiming outside. I thought cousin knew, so why are you asking me?”

Fu Lingchuan’s handsome face reddened slightly, and he uncomfortably cleared his throat. Back then, he had received intelligence that none of the direct An Xia royal line had survived, which was why he went searching for other royal bloodlines to impersonate Princess Changle. Now with the real princess standing before him bringing up old accounts, even with his thick skin, he felt somewhat embarrassed.

Feng Miaojun pointed at the female corpse on the ground and asked him: “Where did you find this Princess Changle, who somehow resembles my royal mother?”

Fu Lingchuan lightly pressed on the corpse’s shoulder, and it disappeared, presumably collected into his storage ring. “Her birth mother was the Queen’s sister, and her birth father was the Second Prince of An Xia, your father’s blood brother. But she was raised outside for years, unknown to the Prince’s household. When An Xia Kingdom fell, she escaped calamity. Later, I found her, and together we raised the banner of restoration.”

There was still some sadness in his eyes. The girl who had called him “cousin” for many years and spent day and night with him was suddenly gone. He wasn’t stone-hearted—how could he not be moved?

Being “raised outside” meant she was the fruit of an illicit affair, no wonder she was unknown. Feng Miaojun’s phoenix eyes widened slightly. She never expected that the deceased fake Princess Changle had blood relations with her. Calculating the relationship, she was the daughter of Changle’s second uncle, making them cousins with very close blood ties. After An Xia’s fall, she could indeed be considered a direct descendant, no wonder she could also inherit An Xia’s destiny.

Fu Lingchuan looked at her with concern on his face: “Where has the Princess been all these years?”

Having confirmed that she was indeed the real Princess Changle, Fu Lingchuan’s attitude toward her immediately became gentle. After all, she was the undisputed royal bloodline, the New Xia Queen he needed most!

They say appearance reflects the heart. This cousin princess had grown into an elegant and majestic young woman. Her temperament, vision, and manner of speaking were not something that could be cultivated in common households—just as a golden phoenix couldn’t fly out of a chicken coop.

Her days must have been quite comfortable.

“Traveling around various states, experiencing different customs, broadening my horizons considerably.” She had learned one skill from Yun, which was to speak without really saying anything.

“What does cousin plan to do next?” Judging from her various reactions so far, this cousin was no pushover. Simply beating around the bush would get them nowhere, so Fu Lingchuan decided to speak directly, “You have now been verified by heaven and are the rightful Queen of New Xia.”

She glanced at him, her face showing complete disinterest: “Not interested. I live freely and comfortably. If you hadn’t endangered my life, I wouldn’t have needed to reveal myself.” Why not continue being a free-spirited and wealthy young lady? Why go be a laborious and exhausting ruler of a country?

Indeed, this accident had nearly cost everyone their lives, including hers. Fu Lingchuan rubbed his nose, admitting: “It was my fault. I didn’t think it through, but New Xia needs you.”

But she didn’t need New Xia.

This thought crossed her mind, but of course, she couldn’t say it out loud.

Feng Miaojun shook her head: “You were able to establish one fake New Xia Queen, you can establish a second one.”

Fu Lingchuan laughed wryly: “Back then, I didn’t know you were alive, and had no choice. Now that the real princess is alive and well, I absolutely cannot continue with such deception.”

So he knew his previous actions were deceiving the world? Her eyes flickered with a different kind of cleverness: “This is Master Fu’s specialty, isn’t it familiar territory for you?”

Fu Lingchuan smiled bitterly: “Cousin, please stop teasing me. An Xia has fallen, and millions of people are suffering under the Wei Kingdom’s tyranny, barely able to endure! If the late King and Queen were alive, they would surely be heartbroken to see this.”

After appealing to reason, he immediately followed with an appeal to emotion. Feng Miaojun smiled—was he using the memory of her former body’s parents to pressure her? “Before the Queen sent me to flee, she specifically instructed me to hide among the common people and never again be burdened by state affairs.”

“The An Xia Queen’s motherly concern is truly moving.” Fu Lingchuan was touched, but immediately changed tack, “But during these years the Princess has been hiding among the people, has the world truly been peaceful? In wars and chaos, the common people suffer the most. As they say, ‘When the nest is overturned, can any egg remain intact?’ He sighed deeply, “Seeking only one’s welfare is difficult indeed!”

Feng Miaojun smiled enigmatically: “That need not concern Master Fu.” She was confident she could navigate this world like a fish in water.

Seeing her so impervious to persuasion, Fu Lingchuan felt somewhat helpless: “Why doesn’t the Princess speak plainly? What would it take for you to return to An Xia and be its Queen?” The person before him was more difficult to deal with than the fake Princess Changle, certainly not a good puppet candidate. However, her identity stood firm, able to withstand scrutiny, thoroughly eliminating any loopholes or hidden dangers in his plan.

From the moment he saw the heavenly punishment dissipate, he understood that he must bring this true Princess of An Xia back, no matter the cost!

Moreover, he didn’t believe that this princess had no ambition, and had never calculated. A monarch could enjoy the ultimate luxury in the world and hold life-and-death power over countless people. In short, one could possess what 99.9% of people in this world could never enjoy. How many heroes have fallen to corruption because of power? She was just a sixteen-year-old girl—could she resist such a tremendous temptation?

Feng Miaojun smiled slightly: If he had laid his cards on the table earlier, everyone would have been more at ease.

She had two choices. One was to kill Fu Lingchuan, take the successfully tested Ji artifact, and flee. But if she did so, what would happen to the newly established New Xia?

That was, after all, Princess Changle’s ancestral country. Regardless of Fu Lingchuan’s intentions, he had ultimately allowed her to evade her responsibilities for many years.

If she killed him now, what kind of uproar would it cause in New Xia?